Auto op&#39;ner garage door



July 8, 1959 g. MCCAMMQN 3,454,074

AUTO OPNER GARAGE DOOR Filed. Jan. 5, 1966 INVENTOR United States Patent 3,454,074 AUTO OPNER GARAGE DOOR James Elvin McCammon, 224 /2 E. Broadway, West Memphis, Ark. 72301 Filed Jan. 3, 1966, Ser. No. 519,829 Int. Cl. E05f 11/36, 11/54, 13/00 U.S. ci. 160189 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE My invention of the Auto Opner for a garage and a collapsable door thereto, is designed to facilitate the opening of the garage door, specifically so that one need not get out of the car, in case of bad weather, such as rain. The Auto Opner mechanism also acts as a lock when the door is closed from the inside, as in an attached garage, with inside door to the house. The door assembly consists of a metal frame up both sides of the opening and across the top, with the door made in sections collapsing toward the inside as it is raised toward the top, by counter balanced weights. The door is held down, or closed by the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener. This fastener is' located at the bottom of the door, on the right side, and consists of a notched plate, swinging up and down on a pin or rivet, at one end, with a main arm extending out from the fastener at the other end. A lever arm extends at right angle to the main arm, and parallel to the plane of the door to be engaged by a front wheel of an auto to pull the notched plate off the pin on the door, releasing the door which will raise up by means of the counter weight attached to the end of the door. The opner fastener is lifted up and turned over to the inside when the door is pulled down to closed position. The Auto Opner Fastener is placed against the door in an upright position, and another notch in the plate engages the pin at the bottom of the door, and a clamp holds the Auto Opner arm against the door thus locking it. After one drives his car out of the garage, the door is pulled down, or closed, and the Auto Opner Fastener arm is turned to the outside and raised with a handle on the arm, and a foot bracket is placed on the door, to hold it down or closed while setting the Auto Opner for operation.

The drawings of the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener are as follows:

FIGURE 1, lower sectional view of the side frame, door, and the installation of the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener.

FIGURE 2, top cutaway view of the side frame, top frame, location of the door and upper pulley assembly.

FIGURE 3, side view of left side frame, with sectional parts of the door, method of hanging, hinge means, and the location and side view of the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener.

FIGURE 4, view of the side frame, with sectional view of the door, showing location and the function of the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener.

FIGURE 5, cutaway view from the inside, showing left side of the frame, door, Auto Opner location and the pin on the door, cable fastening and function with the counter weights.

The following specification fully points out and describes my invention of the Auto Opner Garage, to be 3,454,074 Patented July 8, 1969 new, useful, and different from the old. The door assembly consisting of a hollow frame 1 on each side, made by placing two right angle pieces of metal together forming a hollow tube, the outer angle extending beyond the inner one, thus forming a frame portion 3 for the door to rest against, and a strip with holes for fastening with screws to the door jamb. The frames 1 are connected across the top by an angular piece of metal. The top of each side frame has a pulley 4 mounted, between brackets, made by cutting down the side on the inside angle from the top and bending the two sides in to form brackets 5, to hold the shaft -6 of the pulley 4. Each side frame 1 has a vertical slot 7 extending the length of the opening, FIGURE 3.

The door consists of six collapsable sections 8 of equal width, held in place by pins 9, running up and down in the slots. The slots are located so that the door 8 will rest against the frame flange 3, when it is down or closed. The door 8, when opened will collapse to the inside of the garage. When the fastener is released the door will open by means of a rope or cable 10 running over the pulley 4, pulled by the weight 11, attached to the lower pin 9. The door will be held down or closed, by the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener 12.

The Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener 12 consists of a metal plate in the shape of a half circle, fastened to the side frame 1 by a bolt and spaced from the frame by a U- shaped washer 13 at one end, and with a main arm 14 bolted at the other end and near the top and extending out at right angle to the door in one position. A lever arm 15 is secured at a right angle to the main arm a distance far enough from the door to permit a front wheel of an automobile to pass thereover without engaging the door. The depressing of this lever arm pulls the notched plate 12, off the pin 9, thus releasing the door 8, allowing it to be pulled up by action of the counter weights 11, running over the pulley 4, fastened to the lower pin 9. Thus the garage door can be opened without getting out of the car. This is especially useful in bad weather such as rain. To set the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener, you pull the door down placing a foot on the bracket 15 and raising the arm 14, with the handle 17, so that the notch 18 engages the pin 9, at the lower end of the door, release the foot and the door will remain closed. To lock the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener, when the door is closed, the lever arm is swung inside the garage, as seen in FIGURE 14, and placed against the door. The notch 19, in the plate 12, engages the pin 9, thus locking the door when the clamp, 20, is in place. This method will be useful to those who have attached garages with inside entrances to the house.

I hereby make the following claims for my invention of the Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener as being new, useful and different from that which is old, and pray that Letters Patent be granted to me:

1. The Auto Opner Garage Door Fastener consisting of a metal frame mounted in the opening, constructed of lengths of angle metal, placed together to form a hollow tube, with the outer angle extending beyond the inner one, forming a flange frame for the door to rest against and a strip with holes for fastening, with screws, at a right angle to the jamb of the building, where this inverted U-shaped frame and door assembly, consisting of six, collapsable sections, of equal width, hinged together at the ends and held in place by pins placed alongside the sections running up and down in slots in the side frames, slots are located so that the door will rest against the flange, making it weather tight, is hung, raising the sec- ,tions collapsing to the inside of the garage by means of a rope or cable, running over a pulley located at the top of each hollow tube, and attached to the counter weights in the tubes and is held closed by the auto opener and fastener means, consisting of a metal plate in the form of a half-circle, fastened at the lower right of the door frame, spaced from the frame by a U-shaped washer at one end, with a main arm bolted at the other end near the top and extending out at right angle to the door, enough to permit the front wheel of an automobile to pass, in one position. A lever arm is secured at a right angle to the main arm in L-shape, a distance for enough from the door to permit the front wheel of an automobile to pass thereover without engaging the door, being adjustable by means of diiferent spaced holes in the arm extending from the half-circle plate, being notched at places in the circle part so that when the arm is extended and raised slightly, the notch at the right will engage the pin in the lower door section holding the door down and closed, by action of the counter weights pulling the door up the depressing of the arm by driving the front wheel of an automobile across it, releasing the door which opens by means of counter weights raising and lowering in the hollow tube at each side, thus the garage door is opened without getting out of the automobile and is pulled down closed and fastened by placing a foot on the bracket attached to the door, raising the arm by means of the handle attached to the arm, so that the notch in the half-circle plate engages the pin at the lower door section, releasing the foot, the

door will remain closed, by action of the counter weights in the tubes at each side, pulling the door up, and can be fastened from the inside by swinging the lever arm inside the garage, and placing it against the door, with another notch in the half-circle engaging the pin in the lower door section, fastening the door when the clamp on the inside of the door is placed over the extended lever arm, holding it against the door.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 781,665 2/ 1905 Kusch l60-193 1,624,814 4/ 1927 Szalla 160-118 1,801,220 4/1931 Brown 160207 X 3,079,989 3/1963 Fentiman 160l89 FOREIGN PATENTS 332,093 7/ 1930 Great Britain.

PETER M. CAUN, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 160-190 

